Knitting machine



KNITTING- MACHINE Filed March 26. 1928 /TToR EVS.'

Patented Mar. 1s, 1932v UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WILLIS A. INGALLS, F SYRAGUSE, NEW YORK KNITTING MACHINE Application vled Iarch 26, 1928. Serial No. 264,582.

and plate or dial set having the usual hook l and latch are employed, andrefers more particularly to a means for automatically transferring the yarn from the needles of one set to the needles of the other` set as, for example,

in changing from a rib stitch fabric to a pl-ain lo stitch fabric.

The main object is to incorporate 1n amachine of this character, simple and efficient meansv whereby the knitting of the fabric may be automatically changed from one stitch to the other.

One of the specific objects is to associate with the knitting needles of one set, separate relatively movable transfer members which may be progressively actuated by a suitable ,o cam for sequentially displacing the yarn loops formed by the adjacent needles therefrom and placing them in position to be engaged by needles of the other set.

Other objects and uses relating to the form g5 and relation of the needles and transfer members'will be brought out in the following description,taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 are perspective views ofportions of one of the needles of each set, together with portions of one of the transferv members showing different posi,

tions of said needles and members in effecting the transfer of the yarn from the needles of one set to the needles of the other set.

Figure 7 is a. face view ofone of the transfer members. t

Figure 8 is a face view of' a knitting needle adapted to be associated with the transfer o member illustrated in Figure 7.

Figure 9 is .a transversev sectional view taken substantially in the plane of'the line 9 9, Figure 3, but associated with a suitable guide ring or'cylinder.

Figure 10 is a face view of aportion of the fabric stretched out to show the change from one stitch to the other.

Figures 11 and 12 are enlarged sectional views of the fabric taken respectively in the plane of the line 17-17 urelO.

The machine for which my novel transfer mechanism is adapted, may be of the conventional circular type consisting of a set of horizontal or late knitting needles 1 arranged in circum erentially spaced relation around and upon a circular plate or guide ring not and 18-18, Figshown, of usual construction and adapted to be reciprocated radially by means of suitable .o

lcam rings, also not shown, of the usual construction, for circular knitting machines. Another set of vertically disposed needles 4 yis mounted for vertically reciprocatory motion in a suitable guide ring or cylinder 5 to 65 be actuated progressively by a rotary cam member not shown, said cylinder needles being arranged in uniformly spaced relation circumferentially around and upon the inside of the cylinder and in 4normally stag- 70 gered relation to the plate needles for knitting a ribbedrfabric.

Each cylinder needle 4 has associated therewith a pair of transfer members 7 arranged along opposite sides thereof in the same groove to permit relative vertical movement of the knitting needles and transfer members. The knitting needles 4 are provided near their upper ends with lengthwise grooves 8 in opposite faces thereof for reso ceiving inturned prongs 9 on the extreme upper ends of the transfer members 7 for guiding the knitting needles 4 and transfer members 7 in their vertical movement one upon the other and also for holding them against radial displacement.

The knitting needles 4 are'provided with the usual shoulders 11 adapted to ride in cam grooves, not shown, adapted to reciprocate said needles. The transfer members 7 are 90 also provided near their lower ends with oil'- set shoulders 12 adapted to ride in a suitable cam groove not shown, in the periphery of a 'rotary 'cam'member or wheel. Likewise, it is to be understood that the plate needles 1 are 95 grovided with shoulders, similar to the shoulers 11 for the cylinder needles, not shown, adapted to vride in a cam groove and which, together with the cam grooves for the cylinder needles 4 and transfer members 7 may be l0 constructed in any suitable manner for progressively operating their respective needles 1 and 4.

When knitting ribbed fabric or double plain fabric, I preferably use one-half as many cylinder needles as plate needles and allow alternate plate needles to idle without knitting while the remaining plate needles cooperate with the cylinder needles to form the ribbed fabric in which case, when knitting a plain fabric, the cam groove for the plate needles lvwill be adapted to progressively reciprocate all of the plate needles, but when knitting the ribbed fabric, only alternate plate needles are used in conjunction withA the cylinder needles 4 during which time the transfer members 7 will remain in their lowermost inoperative position until such time it is desired to change from the ribbed stitch to a plain stitch, whereupon said transfer members 7 will be caused by their cam groove to move vertically relative to the respective cylinder needles 4 to bring the yarn carried by said needles into positiong to be received by the corresponding plate needles 1, as will be hereinafter more fully described.

Another object'in providing the transfer members 7 with the pointed prongs 9 riding in the grooves 8 is to enable said prongs to enter the yarn loop formed by the needles 4 during the operation of transferring the yarn from the needles 4 to the needles 1. For this latter purpose, the transfer members 7 are provided near their upper ends with shoulders 14 projecting laterally beyond the latch side of the needles 4 so that when the yarn loop is formed by the needle and the latter is raised suieiently to open the latch full open, the shoulders 14 will thenbe some distance below the end of theopen latch, see Figure 2, and as the needle assumes its normal down position and the transfer member is raised, said shoulders will engage opposite sidesof the loop to force the same upwardl, thereby closing the latch and permitting the loop to be displaced from the needle 4 into position to be engaged by the adjacent plate needle 1, as shown more clearly. in Figure 4, at .which time the cylinder needles 4 will have been shifted to register with the adjacent previously idling needles 1 by any suitable mechanism, not necessary herein to illustrate or describe, as it does not constitute any part of this invention.

It is, of course, obvious that when the transfer members 7 are applied to opposite faces of the needle 4, the transfer members will be held in sufficiently spaced relation to permit the entrance of the adjacent needle 1 between their upper ends, as shown in Figure 5, and in order to facilitate the entrance of the needle 1 between the transfer members, the outer edges of the latter are beveled at l5 from the upper edge of the shoulders 14 downwardly r a sufficient distance to permit the needles 1 to enter between the transfer members during the transfer operation.

Operation When knitting with both sets of needles,

those of each set will be arranged in staggered relation to those of the other set, while the cams for each set will be arranged and` timed to operate both sets of needles in the usual way for ribbed fabric as long as may be required.

When it is desired to change the fabric from a ribbed stitch to a plain stitch, it is necessary to shift a portion or all of one set of needles as 4 circumferentialy a sufficient distance toregister them with corresponding needles of the other set as 1 and as illustrated in Figure 1 of the drawings. This circumferential shifting movement of the cylinder needles 4 and the transfer members 7 may be accomplished in any suitable manner, not herein necessary to illustrate or describe, and after this shifting movement of the needles 4 is effected to bring the cylinder needles into alignment with the corresponding idle plate needles 1. The cylinder needles 4 may be progressively moved upwardly to bring the loop as -abelow the needle latch, as illustrated in Figure'Q, after which the needles 4 are returned to, their lowermost position which will causethe loops -ato close the latch of the needle in the conventional manner and bein position to be removed from the needles 4, as illustrated in Figure 3.

The transfer members 7 for ,the respective cylinder needles 4 are then progressively moved upwardly during which movement, the prongs 9 of the transfer members will enter the corresponding loops -aand cause said loops to be engaged by the shoulders 14 of the transfer members and be lifted from the'respective needles 4 into a plane above the path of movement of the plate needles 1, as illustrated in Figure 4, after which the corresponding plate needles 1 will be moved forwardly between the respective transfer members 7, as illustrated in Figure 5, after which said transfer members 7 will again be returned to their lowermost position and in so doing, will deposit-the loops a upon the respective. plate needle 1, as illustrated in Figure 6. thereby completing the transfer of the yarn from the cylinder needles to the corresponding plate needles 1 after which the plate needles may be actuated in the conventional manner to knit a plain stitch fabric and the cylinder needles 4. together with thetransfer members 7, maybe returned circumferentiall \1 to their Inormal positions in a plane intermediate the plate needles 1 and be caused to remain in the lowermost inoperative position so as to permit the free operation of the plate needlesfor knitting the plain fabric.

lVhat I claim is:

1. In a knitting machine, a needle having the usual hook and latch and provided with le hwise grooves in its opposite sides exten g beyond the latch at theback of the hook, and transfer members slidable along said grooved sides and provided with shoulders projecting laterally be ond the latch and hook edge of the needle or displacing the knit loop formed by saidneedle therefrom as the transfer member is moved in one direction relatively to the needle, said transfer members having prongs projecting into the adjacent ooves for entering said loop. 2. The com ination with a knitting needle havin the usual hook and latch for formingv amit loop, said needle having lengthwise grooves in its opposite sides at the back of the hook and latch, transfer bars slidable along the grooved sides of the needle and provided with shoulders projecting bean yond the front edge of the needle for displacing the loop from the needle when-,the bars are moved 1n one direction, said bars having prongs projecting lengthwise beyond the shoulders and riding in the adjacent grooves for entering the loop and holding it open as it is displaced from the needle.

3. In a knitting machine, a needle having a hook and a latch and provided with lengthwise guides on its opposite sides extending e0 beyond the latch, and transfer members movable along opposite sides of the needle in sliding engagement with said guides for dis- ]fallacing the loop formed by said needles there- Y 4. In a knitting machine, a needle having a hook and a'latch and having its opposite sides provided with guide ooves extending lengthwise thereof at the ack of the latch and hook, and transfer bars movable alo 40 opposite sides of the needle and rovide with inturned prongs slidable in sai grooves. In `witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 22nd day of March, 1928.

Y WILLIS A. INGALLS. 

